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Originally designed as a cargo and paratroop transport during World War II, the Fairchild C-82 Packet is today mainly remembered for its starring role in the Hollywood film The Flight of the Phoenix (1965). Its ungainly appearance earned it the nickname "the flying boxcar" but the aircraft was the first to achieve practical end-loading and aerial delivery of cargoes. Its outsized capacity served the U.S. military's needs for more than ten years--civilian operators flew it in remote locations like Alaska and South America for a further three decades. This book provides a comprehensive history of the C-82, detailing each of the 224 aircraft built, with technical diagrams, multiple appendices and more than 200 photos.
List of contents
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments
Preface
Abbreviations
Introduction: C-¿82 Development History
Section One
The Airplane
Mission
Specifications
Serial Number List
Variants
Steward-Davis Jet-Packet
Jet-Packet Variants
The Flight of the Phoenix
Section Two
Military Operators
Section Three
Civil Operators/Owners
Section Four
Production Histories
Appendix I: Civil Registration to Serial Number Cross-References
Appendix II: C-¿82 Retirement Bases/Civil Sales and NACA Assignments
Appendix III: Unknown Identities and Dispositions
Appendix IV: Conversions and Unique Packets
Appendix V: Attrition
Appendix VI: Accidents
Appendix VII: Existing Aircraft
Appendix VIII: Civil C-¿82A Checklist
Postscript: Sebring C-82 Packets
Bibliography
Index
About the author
Simon D. Beck has had a lifelong passion for aviation history, both military and civil. Living in Christchurch, New Zealand, he has written a previous book about aviation films and penned many aviation articles.
Summary
Originally designed as a cargo and paratroop transport during World War II, the Fairchild C-82 Packet is today mainly remembered for its starring role in the Hollywood film The Flight of the Phoenix (1965). This book provides a comprehensive history of the C-82, detailing each of the 224 aircraft built, with technical diagrams, multiple appendices and more than 200 photos.
